One thing to remember is all pinball machines are awesome. Just because it's rated low on Pinside, or people say it's shallow, or some people don't like it, it's still a pinball machine and it's fun - period. There's plenty of B/C list games out there for reasonable money - my favorite example is Jokerz. I picked one up in awesome shape for 900 bucks, it's a shallow, but fun and addicting System 11 with ramps, multiball, etc.

My first pin was a Brunswick "Alive". For those that aren't familiar, it's a home model pinball that is completely shunned by all pinballers. I got it for 200 dollars and played the crap out of it. What a horrible game in relation to others, but still fun. I then upgraded to a Space Shuttle which I got for 500 dollars. Still a shallow game, but being able to play pinball without leaving the house was amazing, and again, still fun. Of course now these are going for 1500 bucks or so.

In conclusion, all pinballs are awesome. It's easy to get caught up in the hype on forums like these, especially when you see other people's collections. A lot of these people have a lot of disposable income, but many have been in the hobby forever and have grown their collections.